


A College Luncheon

by HeathNils



Category: Fairy Tail
Genre: Coffee, College Life, College/Modern AU, Foreboding Atmosphere, Love at First Sight, M/M, Moving, Rivalry, Student!Natsu, Student!Sting
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-14
Updated: 2019-06-21
Packaged: 2019-06-27 07:28:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,852
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15680799
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HeathNils/pseuds/HeathNils
Summary: "To love someone so deeply it gives you strength. Being loved by someone gives you the courage."- UnknownSting Eucliffe moves into the sleepy town of Crocus with his friends. He's convinced that it's going to suck until he meets Natsu, a fellow student and begins to crush on-- Hard. Love isn't the only thing in the quiet air as people begin to disappear in the night air around and Sting discovers that studying for his exams will be the least of his problems.





	1. Dark Prologue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was a rewrite of a previous story that I tore down months ago but I decided to rewrite it and post it back up for second life and a second chance. Hopefully it'll be worth it. :3

He was gasping for air, struggling to breathe as he desperately pushed himself up off the ground and onto his numbed and injured legs. Once he managed to steady himself on his wobbly and weakened legs, he let out a gasp of pain clutching his side feeling warmth pooling through his fingers; his blood. He gasped, head snapping into the direction in the dark corridor when he heard a faint but heavy sound of something being dragged against the ground and his blood ran cold.

He ran.

To where, he didn't know. He didn't even know where he was.

He ran down a long and poorly lit concrete hallway, the fading lights flickering and swinging in a non existence wind, his legs burning in pain and his lungs also burning, gasping for much needed air. The hallway seemed to grow longer and longer, never ending and the exit moving further and further away from his reach. His clothes were becoming torn and frayed from his long running and stumbling around over broken walls and glass and it didn't help that he was barefoot, making his escape more difficult. His face and skin were covered with dirt, blood and abrasions from Gods knows what and at the same time everything in this environment he had woken himself into. How he got here was beyond anyone as all he could remember was being in his office working on an old file when he recalled feeling dizzy, nauseous and lightheaded and then everything went black and he woke up, stripped of his uniform wearing just a shirt and old jeans. 

His eyes widen.

He had been drugged!

He gasped and jumped when those dragging sounds were growing closer and closer and he began running further down the hallway. What it was he was running away from he had no idea, it wasn't anything he had ever seen before-- It wasn't even human and he knew he had to get away and fast. He gasped and stumbled a bit, one hand plastering itself to a dusty wall while the other came to his throbbing temple and he whined in pain making it difficult for him to run let alone allow him to think properly.

He was remembering more and more of the day earlier before he went to work-- before this had happened. He remembered saying good-bye to his baby brother and sister, that he would see them tomorrow and he loved both of them. He remembered being called into the office by his boss alongside his wife, commended for a good job and was offered a cup of coffee that tasted- odd, salty even- but didn't think anything of it as he made his way back to his office and the next thing he knew, he found himself in a darken room that smelled of rotted flesh ans death on top of a wooden table covered in dark stains, tied down. No one in sight but a sinister voice that mocked him and taunted him with promises of torture and death if he didn't agree to its terms.

He escaped and ran.

He gasped when his vision swam and felt nauseous before he suddenly tripped and fell, landing hard onto his chest and stomach. His dark eyes widen when he heard the shuffling sound from the other end of the hallway come closer and closer toward him followed by a low, sinister cackle through his fuzzy hearing. He felt his heart beat faster and faster as he struggled frantically to get back up on his feet, fear starting to get a good hold on his hurting and throbbing brain. Why was he so scared of body less sounds?

He didn't know.

He didn't care!

Whatever or whoever it was, it was coming closer and closer, its rotting breath rattling louder and louder. He panicked, pushing his dark hair out of his clammy face as he ran down another hall trying to get away. He kept on running and running though it didn't seem to do him any good until he spotted an open rusty looking steel door and quickly, but quietly while steadying himself, ran inside and closing the door quietly behind him, the tense atmosphere wrapping him in the darkness as he pressed his back against the filthy steel. Praying that whatever it was it was dumb enough to miss him and walk past this very door.

_'Please please please DON'T LOOK HERE! Just keep walking KEEP WALKING!'_

Luck seemed to be on the young man's side as he hoped it would only pausing briefly to sniff at the door before it shuffled down the hall, muttering darkly in some strange tongue. He took a few shaky deep breaths to settle his frayed nerves before he began to quickly and as quietly as he could began to look for a light switch, moving his hands blindly across the smooth but gritty, slimy, moisten walls on the right eventually finding what he hoped was a light switch and flipped it on.

What he encountered was completely unimaginable and utterly horrifying.

Covering every inch of the room was blood. On the ceiling hung large meat-hooks that held various headless corpses in various forms of either decay or stripping of flesh, some missing their limbs ranging from arms to legs to even a torso being hacked out. On one side of the room was a wooden table that held a decapitated body that had a large butcher knife jutting out. Knifes ranging from size and brands hung on a wall opposite side of the table. There were bones littered here and there, on the floor, the table and in a large freezer-sized bin, flesh either stripped or half-way through the process. The smell of blood and rotting flesh was overwhelming, blood was splattered everywhere and the poor man had to will his already nauseous stomach to keep its place.

"Oh my..."

Covering his mouth just as he began to hyperventilate or throw up, he fled through the room as fast as he could away from the horrific sight, trying his best to not scream or panic as various dismembered limbs bumped and knocked into his head, shoulders, back and chest as he ran to the other end of the room to another poorly kept steel door.

He was trapped in a slaughterhouse from Hell!

He wretched it open and fled down the hall till he reached a stairway. The minute he reached the first step, he quickly lost his footing and fell down the long flight of stairs, landing face first at the bottom. Tears began to escape his eyes as the pain broke through his numb body. He tried to will his numb body back onto his feet before whoever that was chasing him that owned this horrid place found him and did whatever people like them normally would do to their capture prey, but the numbing pain was just too much.

"H-Help.... Somebody... Help..."

A dark shadow suddenly loomed over him and he froze as he heard that horrifying loud rattling sound. Fearfully, he slowly and timidly turned to face the thing that stood over him. What caught his attention was who stood next to this ungodly beast-- His eyes widen. 

His- His Boss?

But- But why?

But that didn't stop him from being defiant.

"You won't get away with this!" He seethed words slurred as he tried to look as intimidating as possible from his position on the ground. "You'll never win!"

"Oh~ But on the contrary Sweetheart, I just did." He sneered squatting himself down to the fallen man's eye level. "I'll admit you played the game well enough and you are just as clever as they say but now- It's game over for you."

"I'll never- Uhnn- I'll never stop fighting!" He screamed, pain shooting up his spine and into his brain. "Over my dead body."

"If that's what you want-"

The man stood over him, sneering and laughing before the dark haired man's face changed from determination to fear as he watched in horror as the man whom he thought he could trust, moved to the side allowing a less-then-humanoid being, with skin black and slimy, like as though it was in the process of decaying to move forward towards him. It had no eyes, two large slits for nostrils a large mouth full of sharp, elongated dagger-shaped teeth, teeth that would put a angler fish and a piranha to shame. Its arms looked thin and feeble with three claw-like fingers on each hand, the arms were about as long as the body themselves causing the creature to drag them on the floor. Its legs were like that of a cat's, but more skinned and thinner then any cat's. It had a tail that was similar to a scorpion's, though it wasn't curled like the scorpion's.

He could only lie there, trembling with fear and terror as the creature stood over him, drooling and growling. The creature let a deafening roar just as the other man moved around from behind the creature-- hiss boss-- sneering as he bend down to one knee and reached out for the terrified young man, snatching him up by his dark hair and yanked him close before he spoke in a dark and menacing voice.

"It's dinner time."

He did the only logic thing that he thought of; He quickly wrapped his hand around a small circle pendant around his neck and clutched it tight and closing his eyes just as tears began to show and there was a tight vice like grip on his ankle, pulling him closer and closer to the creature as the bastard just stood there and laughed, releasing his hold on his hair. He struggled to breath as he whispered his last words before he screamed in bloody murder.

"I'm sorry... I-I... I won't be coming home... Natsu... W-Wendy... Forgive me."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Reviews much appreciated. :3


	2. Welcome to Crocus

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Where has the time gone?
> 
> Man, I'm one lazy ass writer. Hopefully this chapter can make up for this injustice and help encourage me to do better.

It was a fairly warm August day, where the temperature didn't seem to be too hot, rather fairly mellow. The air light and flowing gently, allowing the scents of cutting grass, open fire barbecue and bringing the scents of a rapidly fading Summer season and rapidly approaching Autumn season as they grew closer and closer to their destination.  
Sting Eucliffe was a man who always found the upside to everything that went wrong in life and was often talking excitedly among the others that were chattering. But not today. The mere thought alone as to why he was here didn't quell the burning anger, anxieties and number of other emotions he felt. He lied in the very back of a large passenger van on his back staring into the ceiling, his arms folded across his chest, legs resting on top of a large box while the van moved down a long stretch of road. 

Sting was a slim, yet muscular, toned young man of average height wearing a simple white tee, faded white-washed jeans and sneakers, nothing to brag about. His blond hair, which stuck out in strands jutting outwards in every direction, gave people around him the impression that he had just woken up with a smaller, frontal cowlick, a tuft of hair partially hanging over his forehead, dancing and tapping across his forehead from the van's movement. His dark blue eyes grew more darker as he stared hard into the ceiling with something akin to annoyance; anger maybe where above the right one was a thin, diagonal scar. His left ear was adorned with an earring, a small crystal pendant which bounced up and down as the van hit every pothole and crack on the road.

"Ooooh~ That must be our new school!"

"Woah..."

"You see that Library? Not in memory do I believe I have seen such a large storage facility!"

"Wonder where the apartment is?"

He let out an over the top huff of air. He was glad THEY were looking forward to all of- This.

"This must be it. Crocus."

They had finally arrived into the city of Crocus, a large bustling college town that seemed to be moving at a fast pace, not humanly possible even in this reasonable heat. Sting managed to move, raising himself to his elbows to briefly looked out of the moving vehicle's window before his eyes narrowed and he made a face at the town, stuck his tongue out and then settled himself back into his original position. 

Not at all happy. 

To Sting, moving into a new town, into a new school even, it was difficult to settle into his new life and was going to turn into a living nightmare. He just knew it too. What a way for him to end his summer vacation.

"I hate it..." He mumbled out, turning to his side. "We were just fine in Spokane."

"Then why did you even come along?" Came an exasperated sigh that had Sting glare at him only to have it returned in full force. "You could have stayed..."

Rogue Cheney had been Sting's best friend since they were in kindergarten, since their fathers, Weisslogia and Skiadrum knew each other. 

He was a slim young man that matched Sting in height with rather messy black hair, which almost reaches down to his shoulders when it wasn't in it's ponytail, along with some strands pointing upwards on top of his head and a prominent tuft obscuring most of his forehead. His hair was brushed to the right side of his face covering up both a part of a thin scar across the bridge of his nose and his right eye, both eyes were considered by many as the most beautiful _'Ruby Red'_. His clothes clung tightly but the same time hung loosely off his body, dark jeans and dark long-sleeved shirt and why he'd wear them in this weather was beyond anyone not even Sting who knew him the longest could explain why either.

"Cause I'm not a totally douche who abandons his friends." Sting retorted. "Like you asses."

"Oh come now, Sting, don't think on the negatives." Another one of Sting's friends, Orga Nanagear said as he turned in the passenger seat smiling lightly. "You'll never know it but you might actually have fun here, in our new home for the next four to six years, make some new friends--"

Orga Nanagear was one of Sting's closest friends, having known the man since high school. He was a rather pale-skinned man, very massive and heavily muscular, taller then Sting but by a couple of feet. Possessing an extremely well built torso, and matching arms that was somehow was able to squeeze into the van but it could be that his legs, while normal in size, may have helped. His light green hair was long and rather messy barely kept in check with a plain black headband, two long spikes that fall on either side of his face, framing it. Orga possessed a rather elongated, almost rectangular face, with his linear-like eyebrows being placed diagonally at his pale eyes' outer sides, pointing upwards; making it look as though he had a slight grimace. His massive shoulders and biceps are adorned by large dark tattoos, with each arm bearing a circle flanked by a pair of slender objects, reminiscent of both wings and elongated leaves shown off nicely by his tank top, work jeans and work boots.

"Doubt it." Sting replied. "There will be nothing here."

"Orga's right, Sting." Another man said as he stopped their large van at a red light and peered at the blond man through the review mirror. "If memory serves correct, you're often the one that looks to the positives in life."

Rufus Lore was similar to Rogue in terms of figure for he, too was a slim young man but with very long, straight blond hair that reached down below his back that he tied into a small ponytail while two shoulder-length bangs framed his face before flowing backwards into the rest of his hair. Rufus possesses deep, slanted black eyes, that when angered, he could easily scare and silence people around him with no difficulty his facial features was rather delicate in appearance and was sometimes was confused for a woman.

"That was then." Sting defended. "This is now."

"But Sting, Crocus University is the best school in all of the World," piped up another childhood friend of Sting's, Yukino Agria. She quickly pulled out a small pamphlet. "It was ranked as the top most desirable school to gain an education in since it was first constructed back in 1854!"

"Yeah? I don't care."

Yukino sighed and slumped in her seat slightly, a bit let-down. 

She was a rather small thing compared to the rest of the occupants in the van with a slender, yet well-endowed, figure with short, light silver-blue hair with fringes framing her face, her large doe-like brown eyes and a black rose ornament on the left side of her head. She wore a casual but formal-looking beige turtle neck and form fitting black jeans as she hoped that once they got to the apartments, she could go straight to the school, sign up while making a good impression at the same time.

"Oh don't look so down, Yukino," said Minerva Orland warmly, patting her on her shoulder. "Sting's just being grumpy."

"Am not!"

"Oh?"

Minerva raised a eyebrow in question. Like Yukino, she was a rather slim, her figure considerably curvaceous though slightly taller then Yukino in height and wore a purple and blue sundress. She had long, straight and glossy black hair, reaching down to her lower back, left loose, being parted in the middle of her forehead and sporting two bangs framing her face and going down below her shoulders, some strands tied into a pair of bun-shaped loops at both sides of her head, and a braid is present some inches below each of such loops. 

"Then why are we grumpy, Mr. Grumpypants?"

"What if I get bullied at our new college?" Sting asked, hands in the air as if trying to prove a point. "What if I don't make any new friends? What if we get horrible neighbors? What's your guys' plan then?"

"Oh~ I don't think we have to worry." Rogue smiled. "Crocus is a rather safe town with excellent police force. Crimes happen here rarely."

"Until you get _'Spirited Away'_ ," Orga chuckled, raising his hands to the side of his face, wiggling his fingers in Rogue's direction trying to look frightening. "Beware of the spirit of the night! Oooooooo~"

Everyone laughed, even Sting.

"I promise you're gonna love it." Rufus assured. "And who knows, we might even find our soulmates and forever remain here after we graduate."

Just like that, Sting's good spirits vanished and he pushed his back into the seat as deeply as it would allow before folding his arms across his chest once again and rolled his eyes. He found it rather annoying when Rufus got all dramatic like that because as far as the blond was concerned no such thing was going to happen.

"If you say so."

Many thoughts began to cloud his head as to how his new life was going to play out. While he knew that Spokane and Crocus were on opposite ends of the mountains, it didn't ease his mind that there was a possibility that the teachers of Crocus somehow heard about him. While many described Sting as calm and rather smiley, funny guy who rarely got angry, he did have a bit of reputation with teachers as the kid who's always 'goofing off' and won't amount to much in life. College wasn't going to be any different he was sure, although Sting didn't even want to go to college in the first place but whatever.

"Well, we're here." Rufus announced as he stopped the car and turned off the engine. "Everyone out. Come now. Out out."

Sting blinked a couple of times before he sat up once more and looked out the window, up to their new home. It was a rather quint apartment complex, with several different building structures that all seemed to wrap around a small building that served as the leasing office. There were a couple of buildings that looked like houses with a row of garage doors that was probably storage, a large apartment building 10 stories tall was sitting upon fast food, businesses and a local market while others sported several beautiful well-kept lawns and one, a garden. Their apartment rested in the building that also housed the market as moving truck was already parked there and the movers had already began moving their stuff and furniture into their new home, a townhouse really, as the six of them began to exit their car.

"Seems they got started without us," Orga commented with a hum. "That's awfully nice of them."

"Do they know which one's ours?" Yukino asked, uncertain.

"Yep," Orga smiled reassuringly making Yukino smile weakly. "Rogue buzzed ahead and told them to jump ahead should they arrive before we did. Gave them a copy of the key, everything."

"Oh... Okay."

"Indeed." Minerva nodded, before leaning back into the van and pulling back holding a box in her hands. "Let's get unpacking and take a look inside, shall we?"

Sting managed to roll over before jumped out of the very back of the van with a rather unamused, bored look in his eye as began to look over at the neighborhood to the houses that would hold people he would be no doubt stuck with until he decided to finish his schooling. Neat lawns, clean hedges, children playing- Surely, nice people.

"Hey Sting."

Sting looked to the source of the voice that called him and saw Rufus in the doorway that would lead into their new home, waving at him.

"Yeah?"

"I think we manage things here. Why don't you, Rogue and Yukino go out and gets us a couple of coffees from that coffee shop that we saw."

"Whatever." Sting shrugged, before he grabbed his favorite backpack from the back of the van as Rogue and Yukino joined him. He paused. "Where the hell is it?"

"If memory serves right, I believe its a couple of blocks down from here, across the street," Rufus answered, pointing to a direction on Sting's left. "Be sure you three drink plenty of water and carry your cellphones. It's quite warm today."

"Oh, this is good," Yukino beamed, clapping her hands together in excitement. "We might even stop by and see our new school!"

Sting shrugged before nodded as he, Rogue and Yukino quickly waved to the others as they walked down the cement pathway out of the apartments toward town. About half-way through his trek, anxiety began gnawing at his insides at the feeling of something bad was just about to unfold, Sting shook his head that earned him rather concerned looks from the two with him but he managed to wave them off. It was nothing after all.

"Why don't we go to the school first?" Yukino said as she swerved in front of the two men. A determined look on her face. "If we get the coffees now and then go, they'll be all icky by the time we get home."

"Seems like a plan," Rogue nodded, he looked toward Sting. "What do you think?"

"I really don't care," Sting shrugged. "As long as I get my iced vanilla coffee, the world's right by me."

"Then it's settled. Let's go!"

The next hour they continued walking down the street, out of the apartment and deeper into the city of Crocus, all three slightly amazed at the sights and sounds of the city that awaited them that even Sting couldn't hold on to his anxieties, watching as the people moved and bustled around them, in a hurry to get to their destinations. They quickly moved and dodged around the numerous people who seemed too busy engrossed in their phones or their messy paperwork to pay any attention as to where they were going, barely missing the three of them as they pressed forward to cabs, buses and trams. They continued their trek into the town's square while playing the game of _'dodgeball'_ with its inhabitants as all three sets of eyes straying up to a looming building in the middle of the bustling city.

"This must be it!"

They continued to stare in awe at their new school. It was like their new apartment had decided to combine forces with their high school.

"Shall we-"

"Hell yeah!"

Sting could no longer hold on to his supposed _'foul mood'_ as he, Rogue and Yukino began to walk and talk in such excited voices about their new teachers, classmates and what classes they were going to take that eventually they reached their destination to a large two-story brick building where few number of people entered and exited the building and various other buildings around. Sting blinked as he moved a little closer to read a sign that stood a few feet away from the staircase.

**Student Center**

"This must be it."

The other two nodded their agreement as they began to climb up the stone steps into the building while Yukino took the time to marvel and look all around the new school that she and they would soon roam in. It was rather large with a cafeteria, coffee stand and book store downstairs that were closed for the weekend, her head turned left and right trying to take in as much as she could as they walked down a long hallway before-

"Huh. Registration's closed for today."

"Hu- What?"

Yukino blinked before she turned and she joined Rogue and Sting to a pair of closed doors with a large sign posted to it.

**_'Closed. Reopen tomorrow at noon'_ **

"Guess we'll have to come back tomorrow," Sting shrugged, "Don't think the others will have a problem and since we have Rufus--"

"No. But would have been nice to have gotten it done beforehand," Rogue sighed. "I wanted to spend all of tomorrow finish unpacking."

"Aw." Yukino slumped slightly. "Me too."

"Hey, cheer up guys. We still have tomorrow," Sting grinned, clapping both of them on the shoulders. "How about we get that coffee now?"

"Sure."

"Okay."

The three exited the building and back into the outside world that had somehow became unbelievably hot and heavy within the short amount of time they spent inside. They pressed forward to their destination, finding themselves back into the city once more, playing _'dodgeball'_ with its citizens. After a while they found their way back and never before had Sting ever craved an iced vanilla coffee so desperately in his entire life.

"FINALLY!" Sting said with big smile on his face. "Coffee, here I come."

"I think I'll get a Mocha Frappuccino this time around."

"What do think the others will want? Should I text and ask?"

"You should. Minerva seems to change her _'favorite'_ every other week--"

_**DING** _

"Yeah, well I know what I'm getting so I'll-" Sting began, turning to the front only to find himself freeze on the spot making Yukino run right into him as his eyes grew wide at the sight. "I'll- I'll--I'll--"

It was as if someone took a pair of jumper cables, attached them directly to his heart and immediately threw the switch, electrocuting his heart and brought it back alive. He could feel the heat rising up his face into his cheeks as he lost all ability to speak.

Was this what many called _'love at first sight'_?

"Why did you stop?" Yukino asked rubbing the side of her head. "Is something wrong?"

"I-I-- Uhhh-"

"Hmm," Rogue paused to study his friend. "I think his brain broke." He rolled his eyes before facing the front once more. "What a darn shame."

"Hi! Welcome to Fairy Tail! What would you like?"

There at the front counter that carried bagels, sandwiches and other yummy treats, behind the cash register cleaning a glass in his hands had to be the most beautiful person with the most dazzling smile that Sting had ever seen. He had to be no older then Sting with a lean almost feminine figure that had a muscular build to remind people around him that he was indeed a young man. He was a couple inches smaller then Sting himself, almost rivaling Yukino in terms of height with skin that was lightly kissed by the sun, large doe-like golden eyes and soft looking spiky pink hair. What drew Sting's eyes was not only that smile but the white scarf with scale-patterns that the boy was wearing around his neck in this hot weather.

He knew that it was the middle of summer right?

"Yes, hello." Rogue smiled as he approached the counter followed by Yukino, ignoring Sting's rigid figure and internal struggles. "Uhm let's see- Oh! I would like the Mocha Mint Frappuccino. Grande please."

"Okay," Sting watched as the boy set the glass down and pulled out a pad of paper and a pencil to jot the order down. "You?"

"Oh, I think I'll try the Strawberry Creme Frappuccino. Largest one you've got," Yukino smiled brightly as she pulled out her cellphone. "I have three more. Would it be okay?"

"Sure." That smile immediately shot an arrow through Sting's heart.

"Uh- We also need a Grande Chai Tea Latte, light on the foam," Yukino began to read off her cellphone. "A venti Salted Caramel Mocha Latte with skim milk and a tall dark Chocolate Mocha iced coffee with extra chocolate chips and can we have them for here?"

"Why?" Rogue asked, eyebrow raised.

"Orga sent a text saying that they're on their way here."

"Ah." Rogue nodded. "Okay."

The pinkette nodded as well as he jotted those down, before those pretty eyes of his landed on Sting, causing the poor blond's face to heat up and his heart to stop. Jeez, he was behaving like a school girl who was finally confronted by her crush and his thought process didn't seem to help him any.

He was cute!

"And you?"

Gods, his voice was like honey.

"Sting?"

He blinked. "Huh? What?"

Rogue rolled his eyes in annoyance while Yukino giggled behind her hands at Sting's response. Though Sting was more intune with the pinkette's chuckle at his actions.

"Didn't you want something?" Rogue asked, fingertips massaging his temples. "Something you've been griping about since we got here?"

"Oh! Uh- Can I get-" He quickly looked up at the menu. "A large iced vanilla coffee with extra shot of coffee?"

_'And your name and number while we're at it.'_

"Alright," The boy nodded, scribbling that down before he turned his attention to the cash register while Sting pouted that the kid wasn't a mind reader. "Anything else?"

"No, I think that'll do it," Rogue replied as he approached the counter, wallet in hand. "They're all together and I'm paying for it."

"Okay," There was that smile again. "Your total is $30.64."

"Hmm." Rogue blinked before smiling and nodding. "That's a fairly good deal."

The pinkette just smiled before the door behind them dinged.

"Sorry I'm late," the newcomer said, rubbing the back if his head as he walked toward the pinkette. He looked rather annoyed. "You wouldn't believe the bullshit Lyon tried to pull just to keep me from coming to work."

"Yeah yeah. Whatever." The pinkette laughed before holding out the notepad. "I'll hear your story some other time when I care. Can you get started on these, Popsicle Brain?"

"Sure thing Pyro Head."

The young man moved around the counter before throwing his jacket somewhere to be forgotten as he snatched the notepad from the pinkette's hand as the pink haired boy stuck his tongue out at him and began Rogue's transaction. He was about a foot taller then the boy, with a cross-shaped necklace around his neck and with his body toned and muscular that showed nicely under that tight looking dark shirt and jeans he wore. He had spiky dark hair with dark blue eyes, and hidden partially underneath the bangs was a scar. He seemed laid-back, with a look that seemed to read that he was either bored or he hated his life right at that moment, probably from what he mentioned earlier. Sting couldn't help but feel a tinge of jealously that this dark-haired man knew this pink-haired hottie to the point that they seemed to have nicknames for each other and he didn't.

Well, he was going to fix that.

"My name's Sting Eucliffe," he said, leaning over the counter and startling the pink-haired boy, his co-worker as well as Rogue and Yukino. "What's yours?"

The boy blinked, looking to the dark-haired man behind who shook his head and shrugged. He turned to look at the blonde pointing at himself and mouthed _'Me?'_ to which Sting nodded. A big smile on his face.

"I'm Natsu." He replied after a while, with a faint trace of a blush. "Natsu Dragneel."

"Nice to meet you," Sting grinned holding his hand out. "Wanna be friends?"

The boy, Natsu, blinked his large golden eyes at him but before he could answer, Sting suddenly felt the air being ripped from his lungs as the collar of his shirt was yanked, pulling the blonde down, hard, onto the floor with a rather angry looking Rogue glaring down on him.

"Can't I take you anywhere?" He hissed. "Have you ever heard of a little thing called _'manners'_?"

"Have you ever heard of a little thing called _'wanting a friend'_?" Sting hissed back, that had Rogue roll his eyes at him. "I dimly recall you telling me to try and make friends here."

"First off, it was Orga who said that and second, I think you're after a lot more then just his friendship _'buddy'_ ," Rogue hissed back before facing Natsu and his co-worker, while Sting scoffed. "I'm truly sorry for my friend's rude behavior," Rogue said bowing.

"No no that's okay," Natsu smiled, waving his hands. "I wouldn't mind being his friend."

"You- Wouldn't?" Rogue was taken back. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah," Natsu chuckled. "I take it you guys moved in recently?"

"Yeah," Yukino nodded. "We just moved in today. How'd you know?"

"I saw a moving truck enter the apartment complex just across the street there about a few hours back," Natsu explained with a shrug as he handed Rogue his change, "Plus, I like making new friends. So if you guys ever have any questions, feel free to turn to me."

"That's awfully nice of you," Rogue smiled. "Thank you."

"Don't mention it."

"Wanna join us for coffee?" Sting asked popping his head up like a gopher.

"STING!"

"What?"

"Sure," Natsu smiled. Sting could feel his heart flutter. "Just let me give Queen Elsa here a hand and then we'll join you."

"Screw you, Ash Tray!"

"Fine, guess I won't help." Natsu giggled playfully, shrugging.

"Like Hell you won't," The dark-haired male sneered, "This is your order, not mine, Numbnuts."

Maybe life here won't be so bad after all.


End file.
